Combating Voter Fraud

Thursday

Oct 27, 2011 at 12:01 AMOct 27, 2011 at 9:57 AM

By Peter LaChance

Countless articles arguing against stricter voter ID programs claim voter fraud is not a problem in the U.S.

I prefer logic, truth and just plain old common sense. What is the probability that there is no voter fraud, given the enormity of the numbers? Nobody knows the exact answer, but nobody with any knowledge of statistics and human nature can possibly conclude that no fraud occurs. The question is whether voter fraud is widespread enough to worry about.

Somewhere between 65 percent and about 80 percent of 218 million eligible U.S. voters are registered to vote, not counting an estimated 19.6 million "non-citizens" and over 3.2 million felons. Of these voters, between 20 percent and 60 percent turn out to vote (including absentee ballots), depending on the election (general, primary, presidential, etc.). Therefore, between 30 million and 90 million Americans vote on Election Day.

Many people believe that felons should have a vote, including former Pennsylvania Governor Rendell, who allowed volunteers access to the state's prisons to register felons and collect their absentee ballot applications. Apparently, Rendell thought that he was above the law.

You may also recall how some states in 2008 made it difficult for soldiers overseas to submit absentee ballots on-time, including Pennsylvania. Why is it not called "fraud" when our elected officials resort to such mischief?

Have you ever thought about how easy it is for an individual to commit voter fraud? I certainly don't want to encourage anybody, but in the interest of educating you on how widespread voter fraud might be, here are just a few ways in which it is committed:

- A person registers in different counties and/or states, claiming residence in all of them. Whereas same-county duplicate registration is often caught, our election officials don't have the tools to catch many of the perpetrators who register in other counties and/or states;

- A person registers several times under different names (sometimes under the same address!), using false or stolen documents;

- A person registers via "motor voter" by renewing someone else's driver's license after effecting a change of address: then they only need a social security number and a birth date that matches it, in order to vote;

- A person merely shows up to vote, claiming to be someone else. If they can sign that person's signature without election officials suspecting anything, their vote will probably go unchallenged;

- A person submits an absentee ballot, claiming to be someone else at his or her address;

- A felon registers to vote or maintains his or her existing registration, without reporting that they committed a felony (although, now Pennsylvania lets them vote if they aren't in prison);

- An illegal immigrant applies for a new driver's license and claims to be a U.S. citizen. They use a stolen social security card, a fake birth certificate (shall we go there?), fake utility bill, fake lease agreement or a fake W2.

If you're like me, you are probably wondering why anyone can register to vote, let alone cast a vote, without presenting proof of citizenship. To register to vote in Pennsylvania, you must have a driver's license OR use the last four digits of "your" social security number. OR, if you don't have either of these, you can check another box!

I wonder whether election boards just take your word for it when you answer "yes" to the citizenship question at the top of the form. I give more credit than that to Bucks County's Board of Elections. But what about counties like Philadelphia County, where, for example, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder turned a blind eye to a clear case of voter intimidation that took place there?

Pennsylvania requires you to show a "form of ID" when you vote in person for the first time after registering or re-registering. If that vote is cast by absentee ballot, you must include a copy of a "form of ID" with your ballot. Here is what currently passes for "forms of ID": employee photo ID badges, student photo ID cards, pay checks, bank statements or utility bills. After your first election experience, you don't need to show any ID - you just have to sign the voter sign-in book.

Given all the opportunities to cheat, you can easily figure out how to beat the system if you're an illegal immigrant, an activist, an incarcerated felon or anyone else who wants to commit voter fraud.

Are you disgusted yet? Well, there is a solution, if it ever gets enforced. In 2005, Congress passed the REAL ID Act, which will put strict nationwide requirements on the process the states follow for issuing official identification. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) extended the enactment deadline for all states to Jan. 15, 2013, which, suspiciously, falls after the presidential election.

I don't buy the argument that requiring official citizenship identification for voting will disenfranchise the poor and the elderly. With all the time that the feds have given states to get their acts together and issue these IDs, the states could have ensured the inclusion of the poor and elderly. In the interest of politics, the states have procrastinated and the feds have been lax in enforcing a law that congress passed six years ago.

If you can buy cigarettes and lottery tickets, you can haul your butt down to the nearest government office (take a bus or get a ride if you must) to get your official ID. If you're disabled or infirm, we can come up with a process to get you an ID so that you can use absentee ballots. If you're broke, we can pay for your ID. The states have little excuse for not getting this important job done by now.

In America, voting is a sacred right and duty. Every legal and responsible American voter wants their vote to be counted, without fear of dilution by votes cast via fraudulent means. It's vitally important to the citizens of our great country that we shore up the holes in our system of voting.

Peter LaChance is a conservative blogger from Lower Makefield and he is involved in Bucks County politics. His posts will appear other Thursday and discuss government, politics and current affairs. Please post your comments for all to see. For personal communications, Peter can be reached at Peter@Changineers.com. Politically Correct bloggers post each Thursday.

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